HomeMy WebLinkAbout081224 - WSF Weekly Service UpdateALERT: BE CAUTIOUS This email originated outside the organization. Do not open attachments or click on links if you are not expecting them.
WSF Weekly Media Highlights
Coast Guard cutters laid up by personnel shortages <https://www.marinelog.com/news/video-vice-commandant-lunday-says-three-uscg-cutters-laid-up-by-personnel-shortages/> - MarineLog
Additional Service for San Juan County Fair <https://theorcasonian.com/wsf-commits-additional-crews-to-interisland-route-to-ensure-service-during-county-fair-week/> – The Orcasonian
Woman Gives Birth on Washington Ferry <https://people.com/woman-gives-birth-on-washington-ferry-captain-second-birth-while-at-the-helm-8692490> – People
Steamship Authority apologizes for sailings cancelled due to crewing <https://www.boston.com/travel/travel/2024/08/12/steamship-authority-cancelling-weekend-trips-due-to-crew-shortages/>
- Boston.com
Major Issues of the Week
Last week there were 44 more sailings (37/81) cancelled due to crew availability than the week before. Of those 81, 55 were on the San Juan Islands’ Interisland route (every leg of
the Friday Harbor>Orcas>Shaw>Lopez>Friday Harbor route is counted as a missed sailing, so when that boat is out, every round trip is counted as four cancellations), 22 were on Bainbridge/Seattle,
and four on Clinton/Mukilteo.
The Interisland routes’ legislators, local elected officials, and Ferry Advisory Committee have done an excellent job of explaining the significant impacts of cancellations on this route.
WSF staff is working hard to ensure they operate as scheduled, but last-minute crew relief requests are challenging to fill on a route starting far from most employees’ homes.
Service Reliability*
For the week of August 5-11, systemwide service reliability was 95.8%. Last week, we cancelled 120 of 2829 scheduled sailings, two of which were replaced, for a net cancellation of
118 sailings. Of the 120 cancellations, 68% (81) were due to crewing, 22% (26) for schedule resets (when a boat is so far behind schedule, we cancel a sailing to get it back on schedule,
providing predictability for customers), and 8% (9) were due to vessels being out of service. The remaining cancellations were due to service delays (2), emergencies (3), and boat
moves (2).
*For WSF, “reliability” refers to a scheduled sailing taking places, not on-time-performance. We understand for the public a significantly late sailing isn’t “reliable,” but we also
share on-time-performance data <https://public.tableau.com/app/profile/wsferries/viz/WSF-Public/Index> for transparency on both metrics.
Vessel Availability
We’re operating at our 15-vessel current service level, adding a 16th “bonus” boat on the Fauntleroy/Southworth/Vashon “Triangle” route when crewing and vessel availability allows.
New Vessels and Jumbo Mark II Conversions
New Vessels – As previously reported, we’ve signed a contract with ABB <https://new.abb.com/us> to serve as the propulsion system integrator for our first five new vessels. ABB brings
extensive experience in marine electrification and will support functional design efforts, shipbuilder contracting, supply of propulsion-related equipment, oversight of vessel construction
– particularly the hybrid electric propulsion system – and crew training. We’ll be working closely with ABB over the next few months to refine our functional design and prepare the
technical volumes, the next steps of the Invitation for Bid, for release later this year. We are still scheduled to deliver two boats in 2028.
Hybrid Conversions – Work continues on the Wenatchee, the first Jumbo Mark II vessel undergoing its long-planned midlife propulsion upgrade. That work includes on-going coordination
with the shipyard on when the conversion will be completed and the vessel ready to return to service.
WSF Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility, and Belonging
WSF is working hard to recruit and hire a significantly more diverse workforce. Part of that effort is ensuring our vessels crews, terminals staff, and passengers are treated respectfully.
It’s gratifying, given the work WSF’s Diversity Advisory Group put into creating it, to read this Facebook comment regarding our “Passenger Code of Conduct.” We’ll continue this important
work, revitalized by this appreciation for our efforts.
WSF Community Engagement
Understanding the importance of this week’s San Juan County Fair, a WSF cross-departmental team met to discuss options for ensuring reliability of the Interisland route this weekend.
With collaboration with the county council, a local business, and WSDOT, we can provide the recourses described in the Orcasonian article above. While we don’t have the funding to
over-crew vessels and provide hotel space every day, working with community members helps provide certainty to those attending the fair this weekend and we appreciate the partnership
with the local community.
Through August 23, we are hosting an online open house <https://engage.wsdot.wa.gov/sji-draft-ferry-schedule/> as a major part of updating the Anacortes/San Juan Islands sailing schedule.
The site features draft schedules, info on how the rewrite process works and an opportunity for feedback.